Grade 2 Social Studies Oklahoma standards Standards

Content Standards

Practice Standards

The student will explain the importance of the basic principles that provide the foundation of the American system of government.

Describe the fundamental principles of American democracy, including liberty, equality, fair treatment, and respect for the property of others; define justice as treating others fairly.

Describe the responsibility of paying taxes and explain how taxes are used to provide community services (e.g., fire and police protection, schools, roads, parks and recreation).

Explain the meanings of the national motto "In God we trust" and the phrase “E Pluribus Unum” ("Out of many, one") found on the Great Seal of the United States.

Explain how a free people form a government to better protect their lives, property, and freedoms, as expressed in the Preamble to the Constitution of the United States.

Identify the United States as a representative democracy in which the people elect representatives to make, enforce, and interpret laws according to the Constitution.

Describe how the Constitution of the United States outlines the structure of the three branches of our national government.

Identify the basic roles of national leaders including the President of the United States, members of the United States Congress, and justices of the Supreme Court.

Explain that governments exist at the local, state, national, and Tribal levels to represent the needs of the people, make and enforce laws, and help resolve conflicts.

Explain how American Indian Nations are a self-governing people who make decisions through Tribal representatives in order to meet the needs of their citizens and manage their land and resources.

Explain how individual liberties are protected by the Bill of Rights, using examples from the First Amendment focusing on freedom of speech and religious expression.

Explain how all people can play important and responsible roles in their community through making good choices, obeying laws, volunteering, and working in public service (e.g., law enforcement, fire and rescue, public education).

The student will examine the history of significant events and individuals who impacted our nation and the world.

Compare perspectives of people in the past to people in the present and explain the importance of considering multiple viewpoints.

Explain the benefits of using both primary sources (e.g., diaries, documents, photographs, oral accounts) and secondary sources (e.g., textbooks, films, literature) to understand a past or current event.

Explain reasons why past events happened and the changes they created by identifying the cause(s) and describing the effect(s) of an historical event.

Describe why people from various places and cultures have migrated to the United States (e.g., improved quality of life, economic opportunities, individual freedom).

Identify stories from Christianity that influenced the American Founders and culture, including the teachings of Jesus of Nazareth (e.g., the “Golden Rule,” the Sermon on the Mount).

Research biographies of notable Americans who exhibited patriotism and civic virtues by describing how each individual contributed to the welfare and betterment of the nation.

Leadership (e.g., Abraham Lincoln, Chief Joseph, Rosa Parks, Cesar Chavez)

Military Service (e.g., Davy Crockett, General Dwight Eisenhower, General Colin Powell)

Science and Technology (e.g., Orville and Wilbur Wright, Jonas Salk, Amelia Earhart, Neil Armstrong)

Public Service (e.g., Harriet Tubman, Clara Barton, Theodore Roosevelt, Mary McLeod Bethune).

Examine how different virtues guided the lives of people who made a positive difference in their communities around the world (e.g., Cincinnatus, Winston Churchill, Mohandas Gandhi, Nelson Mandela).

Identify the contributions of people and groups who have shaped our history and explain how they are honored by national holidays (e.g., Veterans Day, Thanksgiving, Presidents’ Day, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, Constitution Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day).

The student will describe the physical and human characteristics of their environment.

Construct and use basic physical and political maps, including a legend and compass rose; explain how symbols are used to represent physical features and man-made structures on a map.

Examine cultural traits of families and communities, understanding that while culture makes us unique all cultures share common features (e.g., language, customs, religious beliefs, economic activities, traditional clothing, shelter).

Describe the relative location of the student’s community to major metropolitan centers of the state, using cardinal and intermediate directions.

Identify basic types of major landforms and bodies of water on physical maps.

Construct basic physical maps indicating the continents and oceans of the world; explain the difference between a continent and a country.

Describe the location of places on a map and globe, using basic grid systems.

Ask geographic questions about where places are located and why they are located there.

Examine how weather patterns, seasons, climate, and the physical features of a place can affect where and how people live.

Compare the characteristics of land use in urban and rural environments (e.g., agricultural and recreational purposes, manufacturing, shopping, community buildings, schools, forms of transportation).

Explain and describe human interaction with the environment by describing how humans both adapt to (e.g., clothing, housing, food choices) and modify it (e.g., farming, irrigation, mining, water reservoirs, construction of homes, businesses, highways) to meet their needs.

The student will understand basic economic concepts of a free market.

Describe how Americans live and work in a free market where they can make decisions about their work, what they want to produce, and what they want to buy.

Explain how goods are produced by using natural resources (e.g., water, soil, wood, coal), human resources (e.g., people at work), and capital resources (e.g., machines, tools, computers, buildings).

Explain that goods and services can be purchased by consumers using both money and credit.

Explain how prices of goods and services are affected by supply and demand, using examples relevant to student experiences.

Explain that scarcity is a condition of not being able to have all of the goods and services that a person wants or needs.

Define trade and explain how trade can lead to interdependence among people and communities.

Identify and describe financial institutions in the community, such as banks, as businesses that provide services to help people manage and save their earnings.

Use biographies of American inventors and entrepreneurs, explaining how their ideas and work helped the nation grow (e.g., George Washington Carver, Luther Burbank, John Deere, Madam C.J. Walker, Henry Ford).

Examine how inventors from other nations and other times made a difference in the way people live today (e.g., Leonardo da Vinci, Marie Curie, Louis Braille, Albert Einstein).

The student will apply critical thinking skills to address authentic civic issues.

Demonstrate an understanding of the virtue of civil discourse to analyze and address real- world problems.

Explain how people make decisions in a democracy, using examples from their community and state.

Use democratic processes to consider and propose actions to address authentic, real-world problems in the community and state.

Describe a range of local and state problems and how communities and local governments are trying to address them.

Develop practices which demonstrate an understanding that social studies involves the evaluation of evidence.

Ask and respond to enduring essential questions of common concerns to the community and state.

Develop responses to supporting questions relevant to specific social studies content knowledge.

Reinforce critical thinking skills by regularly asking and responding to levels of open-ended questions.

Demonstrate understanding of social studies content through completion of authentic tasks and assessments.

The student will use interdisciplinary tools to acquire, apply, and evaluate content understanding of the four strands of social studies.

Demonstrate an understanding of the principles of government, the benefits of democratic systems, and their responsibilities as citizens.

Describe civic virtues and democratic principles such as equality, fairness, and respect for legitimate authority.

Describe the basic structure of government at the local, state, and Tribal levels, including the importance of citizen participation

Explain the purposes of laws and government in the community and state, examining the role of elected officials in making laws.

Develop skills which demonstrate an understanding of historical events and the people who shaped our history.

Explain the difference between a primary and secondary source of information; gather basic information (i.e., author, date, facts).

Define point of view and give examples relevant to the student’s experiences.

Generate possible reasons for an event and draw conclusions from simple timelines by identifying immediate cause and effect relationships.

Demonstrate a mastery of geographic concepts and the use of geographic tools to understand the impact of geography on the past and present.

Ask and answer geographic questions, using geographic information about the student’s community and state.

Describe the community and state’s human and physical environment by creating and using maps, graphs, and other geographic models, including aerial photography.

Identify and describe how humans modify and adapt to their physical environment, using its natural and human resources.

Identify the principles of economic systems and develop an understanding of the benefits of a market system in local, national, and global settings.

Gather basic economic data from various types of graphs and charts.

Describe freedom of choice when determining needs and wants in a free market, including costs and benefits resulting from economic decisions.

Describe examples of the goods and services that local and state governments provide, explaining why people trade.

The student will engage in critical, active reading of primary and secondary sources related to social studies concepts.

Comprehend, evaluate, and synthesize textual sources to acquire and refine knowledge in the social studies.

Summarize the main idea and locate supporting details of a text (e.g., primary and secondary sources).

Use graphic features of a text (e.g., photographs, titles, headings, subheadings, charts, illustrations, and graphs) to understand content.

Apply critical reading and thinking skills to interpret, evaluate, and respond to a variety of complex texts and perspectives.

Determine the author’s purpose, including what the author wants to answer, explain, or describe in informational texts.

Locate facts (e.g., who, what, where, when, why, how) to demonstrate an understanding of key details in a text.

Ask and answer questions to clarify information and engage in collaborative discussions about appropriate topics in social studies.

The student will develop a variety of evidence-based written products designed for multiple purposes.

Summarize and paraphrase, integrate evidence, and cite sources to create written products, research projects, and presentations for multiple purposes related to social studies content.

Compose informative written products, focusing on the facts about a topic, including a main idea with supporting details.

Express an opinion about a topic by composing a written product and providing logical reasons as support.

Engage in authentic research to acquire, refine, and share knowledge through written presentations and products.

Generate a list of topics of interest and individual questions about a specific topic in social studies.

Organize information found during group or individual research, using graphic organizers or other aids.

Create a simple presentation to communicate ideas and thoughts gathered from research.